


Crash Landing

by refusetoshine



Series: Crash Landing [1]
Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-23
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2020-12-28 22:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 3,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21144494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/refusetoshine/pseuds/refusetoshine
Summary: A/U. When Deanna Troi crash lands on Caldos, she is rescued by a mysterious woman with medical training. While the Enterprise looks for her, Deanna befriends her savior and helps her confront her past.





	1. Something To Hide

Deanna is cold. Colder than she’s ever felt before. Under her right hand, she can feel a cold wetness that can only mean one thing.

_Snow_.

Suddenly, she hears a set of footsteps running towards her. The trauma of her crash landing has made it difficult for Deanna to perceive anything about the person. She tries to move and is only met with excruciating pain which makes her cry out in agony. A gentle but firm touch reaches across her chest to hold her right shoulder down. 

“Shh, it’s alright. Don’t try and move.”

The voice is female. She feels a small pressure against her neck and hears the familiar sound of a hypospray before succumbing to the darkness yet again.

\---

When Deanna woke up, she was enveloped in warmth. She could hear a crackling fire and the smell of something wonderful cooking on it. She could sense someone else in the room, but she still couldn’t get a grasp on their emotional state. Slowly, her eyes opened, and she was greeted with the face of an unfamiliar woman. She was human, with flame red hair and bright blue eyes. Despite her abilities being limited, Deanna could sense that she was in no danger.

“You’re awake,” smiled the red-haired woman

“Yes,” replied Deanna. Her voice was weak, no doubt from the hypospray. Deanna knew it would come back in a minute or two.

“I know you can probably tell already, being part Betazoid, but I’m not here to hurt you.”

Deanna stiffened. How had this woman known she was Betazoid? The woman could see the confusion on Deanna’s face and held up her tricorder.

“I scanned you to get the extent of your injuries,” she explained, “You’re very lucky I found you when I did. You had a mild concussion, a dislocated shoulder, and your right leg was fractured in three places.”

Deanna didn’t need telepathy to know that this woman was a highly trained doctor, maybe even Starfleet trained. Deanna felt blessed that she had managed to crash land in the vicinity of someone just as capable as their own Dr. Pulaski. 

Thinking of Kate reminded Deanna of the _Enterprise_. Surely, they must be looking for her since she hadn’t made it back by now. She tried to sit up, feeling pain as she leaned on her left arm. The woman came over to help support her.

“Hey, hey. Take it easy.”

“I need to contact my ship,” Deanna said, gritting her teeth through the pain, “I need to let them know where I am.”

“I already put out a message. They’ll find you soon.”

Deanna was relieved. As she scanned the woman’s face, she could feel a sense of apprehension coming from her. While Deanna didn’t doubt that the beacon had been placed, she could tell that this woman was holding something back, and Deanna was determined to discover what it was.


	2. Vegetable Soup

Deanna ate another spoonful of the most delicious vegetable soup she had ever had. The woman had given her the bowl of soup and explained that it was her Nana’s special recipe and that no replicator had ever been able to do it justice. Deanna had to agree. While replicated food was fine, and sometimes essential for those on starships, nothing compared to the real thing.

As the two women ate their bowls of soup, they fell into a comfortable conversation. Deanna learned that her rescuer’s name was Beverly and that they were currently on Caldos in her now-deceased grandmother’s home. Deanna shared that she was a Starfleet counselor and had been headed back to her ship when she had crash landed.

“What ship are you on?” Beverly asked, “Your shuttle was too destroyed for me to figure it out.”

“I’m from the _U.S.S. Enterprise_.”

Deanna could feel a deep onslaught of intense emotion emanating from Beverly as she mentioned the _Enterprise_. Something about her ship was causing Beverly great stress. The only question now was what.

\---

Beverly stood up suddenly and brought their empty soup bowls and spoons to the sink. She rinsed the dishes absentmindedly, her mind filling instead with thoughts of _him_. 

_Beverly, stop it. You’re stronger than this. _

She looked over at the lovely Betazoid woman she’d rescued. It was just her luck that a shuttle from the _Enterprise_ would crash land right in her vicinity. Although, as she reminded herself, it didn’t mean that the _Enterprise_ would be the one to reach them first. But Beverly knew him too well to know that he wouldn’t be doing everything he could to find his missing crew member. After all, they both knew how much it hurt to lose someone to the dangers of space.

The tears began to fall, and Beverly couldn’t stop them. She sunk to her knees and began to sob. Suddenly, she felt two arms pulling her closer. When she looked up, she saw the counselor’s kind face.

“Let’s talk about it.”


	3. A Good Cup of Tea

“Sir, I’m picking up an incoming message. Audio only.”

Captain Jean-Luc Picard had a grave look on his face. His ship’s counselor had presumably crashed while heading back in a shuttle from a conference. They had been heading towards her original destination, hoping to find some trace of her.

“Play it, Mr. Data.”

Picard’s faithful android second officer hit play on the recorded message.

_ “Attention all Federation starships. I have found an injured Starfleet officer who has crash landed. She has been treated and is safe. Coordinates are…”_

As the voice rang through the bridge, the young ensign on the conn. turned around and looked at the captain with shock. Picard returned the look with an equal amount of bewilderment. They both knew that voice far too well.

“Mr. Crusher, enter those coordinates.”

Wesley Crusher entered the coordinates into the system, heart racing. When the navigation system pulled up their destination, he smiled, knowing that he and the captain had been right.

“Sir, it’s pointing us to Caldos,” he reported, the excitement barely contained.

Picard couldn’t help the smile creeping up on his face. He knew that of all the places Deanna Troi could’ve crashed, that was probably the best possible place she could be.

“Engage.”

_\---_

Beverly and Deanna sat with cups of an herbal tea that Beverly had brewed. It was another one of her Nana’s recipes, but this one felt familiar to Deanna. As she took another sip, it came to her.

“We have this blend in our replicator!” she exclaimed, “I knew it tasted familiar.”

Deanna told Beverly of one of the first times she’d talked to the Captain. He’d offered to get her a drink and she’d asked for an herbal tea. He’d spent a few minutes programming something into the replicator, then had come back with this tea. It had quickly become one of her favourites.

Beverly could feel her heart swelling with emotion. How in the world had he remembered her tea blend? She hadn’t had tea with him in quite some time. There was no way he drank it either. He swore by Earl Grey and no other tea would ever come close. There was no explanation, except…

_ No Beverly. Don’t go there. _

Deanna looked at her companion. She could feel the emotion swirling inside her, and judging from her reaction about the tea, it was related to her ship’s captain.

“How do you know Captain Picard?”

Beverly laughed. It was no use pretending to hide her feelings from an empath, she decided. In the short time they’d spent together, she had come to trust Deanna, and so she decided to tell her everything.

“Well,” she began, “For starters, he was my husband’s captain.”


	4. The Crusher Connection

Picard sat in his ready room, lost in thought. They would be arriving at Caldos in a few hours. In just a few short hours, he’d be seeing her again. 

He had always wondered if Beverly had gone back to Caldos after she’d quit Starfleet. Now, he had his answer, but in some ways, it didn’t feel real. Picard had always pictured Beverly as a Chief Medical Officer, running her own sickbay, and exploring the stars, just as she’d always said she wanted to. 

Of course, that had changed after Jack died and she went back to Earth with Wesley. She’d become withdrawn and when the _Stargazer_ was lost two years later, he’d found out why.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door chime.

“Come!”

His first officer, William Riker walked in with a strange look on his face. Picard knew that face too well and knew that he was about to have to bare his soul to his Number One.

“Forgive me Captain, but I’m getting the feeling that there’s something about this mission you’re not telling me.”

_Called it_, thought Picard as he chuckled to himself. 

“Sir?”

Picard looked at Riker. He knew this mission had been tough for him. He and Deanna were close, and he was worried about her safety. They all had been. But now, Picard was sure that Deanna had fallen into good hands.

\---

Beverly had started by mentioning that served with the captain aboard the _Stargazer_, along with her boyfriend, later husband, Jack Crusher. Upon this revelation, Deanna had gasped.

“Wesley Crusher! He’s –“

“My son,” she’d finished, “But, how do you know Wesley? I thought he was still at the Academy.”

Deanna explained that Starfleet had asked the _Enterprise_ and some of the other Galaxy-class starships to take on some young Cadets from the Academy to give them some practical experience. The competition for the _Enterprise_ had been fierce, being the flagship of the Federation. Deanna and the other senior staff had been asked to help evaluate the candidates, eventually settling on three students, including Wesley. 

“In fact,” Deanna smirked, “I remember everyone mentioning that they were very impressed by Wesley’s application, and Captain Picard had this sense of pride and happiness that I didn’t understand at the time, but now, I think I do.”

As Deanna began to talk about how well Wesley was doing and how the captain had been guiding his progress, Beverly couldn’t help but smile. She had always felt he exaggerated his discomfort with children and the way he interacted with Wesley had always proved that to her. Now, hearing that he was serving on the same ship with her son and was like father figure to him filled her heart with a sense of bittersweet joy.

_Oh, Jean-Luc. What have I done? _

\---

“To start with, Number One, I am fully confident that Deanna is well taken care of.”

Riker could feel the emotions he’d been holding back during this whole rescue starting to emerge. Deanna had crash landed on a strange planet and all they had to go on was a mysterious message that the Captain had accepted with no consultation, except a strange look with Ensign Crusher. 

“How can you be so sure?! How do we know this isn’t a trap? It wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened to a Federation ship.”

Picard sighed. He knew why his first officer was questioning him, and he had the right to know the truth behind his decisions. He trusted Riker with his life and so he felt it was only right that he explained the whole story.

“Will,” he said softly, “I know Deanna’s alright, because I recognized the voice sending the message. She’s a former Starfleet doctor who, up to now, has been untraceable for the last three years.”

Riker understood now why Wesley had shared that look with the captain. He’d talked to the young ensign enough to know that the captain had served with both his parents.

“Beverly Crusher’s got her.”

Picard nodded. Riker could see that familiar forlorn look on his captain’s face. It was the same look Riker had when Deanna had failed to return. He only knew of one emotion that could cause that look.


	5. Imzadi

Beverly discussed the death of her husband and how Captain Picard had been the one to tell her the news and bring him home to her. She talked about how supportive he’d been for her and Wesley, and then burst out into tears. Deanna felt a surge of affection for her new friend, and just as she had earlier, pulled her into her arms.

“He cared so much,” Beverly said, choking through sobs, “He cared so much, and I pushed him away.”

Deanna began rubbing circles on Beverly’s back. The tears were soaking through her shirt, but Deanna didn’t care. She could tell Beverly had been holding this back for a long time and needed to get it out.

“Why did you push him away?” she asked.

“I didn’t want to,” admitted Beverly, the sobs slowing down “After Jack died, I became afraid of everything to do with space travel. I couldn’t even step onto a starship without having a panic attack. Jean-Luc grew up with the sole ambition of becoming a Starfleet captain and exploring the stars. I couldn’t hold him back from that. So, I pushed him away the only way I knew how.”

Deanna could sense her overwhelming guilt and shame and held her closer. 

“I destroyed him,” she admitted, “I broke his heart and I’ve regretted it every day since.”

\---

“The last time I saw Beverly was not pleasant,” the captain admitted, “It was after I lost the _Stargazer_.”

Riker knew full well about the whole situation with his captain’s old ship. A couple years ago, it had been brought back to him by some Ferengi as part of a revenge plot. He’d managed to get through to Picard and got him to destroy the mind control device the Ferengi had planted. 

Picard went on to explain how he’d had to go to Earth to face a court martial over the loss of the ship. While he’d been there, he’d gone to visit Beverly and Wesley. He and Beverly had been talking, but Picard could tell something was wrong and when he’d pried, he’d opened a whole can of worms.

“She started screaming at me, saying everything she could to hurt me. She had said it was my fault that the _Stargazer_ was gone, how I would never captain another ship, how Jack’s death was my fault, and she kept telling me to go.”

Picard took a deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them, Riker could see the tears beginning to form.

“I knew that it was a manifestation of her grief. I knew she didn’t mean the hurtful things she was saying. I told her that I didn’t care how much she hurt me; I wasn’t going to leave and when she started questioning why, I told her what I had told myself I was never going to say.”

The tears were falling now, and Riker felt a surge of affection for his captain. This woman had hurt him deeply and yet he still could find the strength to forgive her. It really spoke volumes about the kind of man Jean-Luc Picard was. 

“I told her that I loved her. That I’d loved her from the moment I’d met her but had never told her because she was in love with Jack. She told me to get out and never come back. She was crying and I never could stand to see her in pain, so I left.”

Silence hung in the air. Riker had one lingering question, one that demanded asking.

“Do you still love her?”

Picard looked at his first officer with a pained expression.

“Yes.”

\---

“I was crying because I felt the same way,” Beverly explained, “I still feel that way. Yes, I loved Jack, but what I feel for Jean-Luc is different. It was an instant attraction and from that moment on, I knew I’d never feel the same about someone else.”

“_Imzadi_” Deanna whispered, smiling to herself. What Beverly was describing was the exact same thing she’d felt when she’d met Will. A surge of emotion hit her as she realized how Will must have been feeling about her being missing and crash landing.

Beverly knew enough about Betazed to know about _imzadi_. She had never thought about it before, but it was the perfect way to explain her relationship with Jean-Luc. They’d both been attracted to each other from the moment they’d met, and it seemed that fate always had a way of bringing them back together, even when she tried to fight it.


	6. Wesley

Wesley was getting apprehensive. They were almost to Caldos and the Captain and Commader Riker hadn’t emerged from the Ready Room yet. He didn’t want to face his mother alone. 

The last time he’d seen his mother was the night before he’d left for the Academy. She had fought him tooth and nail to stop him from going and he had finally had enough.

“Why don’t you want me to go?” he’d screamed, “You’ve known since I was little, it’s been my dream to go. Why?”

His mother had looked at him with tears in her eyes. 

“I don’t want to lose you,” she had whispered, “I’ve lost everyone else.”

Wesley had decided it was time to bring up the subject he’d never had the courage to before.

“You didn’t lose Captain Picard. You just pushed him away.”

His mother had looked at him in shock, but he had been so angry, he hadn’t cared.

“I heard you that night, telling him all those terrible things.”

“Wesley,” she had warned.

“No Mom. You knew they weren’t true, but you said it anyway.”

“Wesley, listen –“

“No Mom, you listen,” he had said, seething, “You pushed him away. He told you he loved you and you still pushed him away. I just want to know why.”

She had broken down into tears and Wesley had felt a pang of remorse for bringing it up, but he’d needed to get it out. 

“Wesley,” she whispered, “I’ve been so afraid.”

\---

_”Crusher to Picard”_

The captain tried to regain his composure before answering. Riker decided to intervene, pushing his own communicator.

”Crusher, this is Commander Riker. What’s going on?”

_“We’ve reached Caldos”_

Picard looked down. It was time. He tapped his communicator.

“Standard orbit, Mr. Crusher.”


	7. Energize

The plan was set. Riker was going to try to contact Deanna first. If they could, he could get a lock on her position and beam her up. Then, the Captain and Wesley would beam down and talk to Beverly. The two of them were in the ready room. Wesley had wanted to talk with the captain before they went for what was bound to be a painful reunion. Sighing, he tapped his communicator.

“Riker to Troi. Come in Troi”

\---

_”Riker to Troi. Come in Troi.”_

Deanna heard Will’s voice on her communicator and shared a smile with Beverly. They had spent the last bit talking about the _Enterprise_ and when she mentioned Will, Beverly had correctly guessed from the way she’d gushed about him that there was something more than friendship between them. She tapped her communicator button.

“Troi here,” she said, then, glancing at her companion, added, “And a friend.”

\---

Riker smiled. Deanna always had a knack for getting people to talk. It’s what made her such a good counselor. He had a feeling that Deanna had heard quite a story.

“So I’ve been told.”

Just then, the captain and Wesley walked into the transporter room. Riker smirked and continued his transmission.

“I’ve got a couple of friends here with me as well. Do you want me to send them down?”

\---

Beverly whispered something in her ear. Deanna turned to her and smiled, then spoke to Will.

“Actually, my friend was wondering if she could come up.”

\---

Riker turned to the captain and Wesley. Both looked shocked, but Picard still gave a nod. Riker turned back to his communicator.

“Absolutely. Stand by.”

Riker went over to the control panel. He got a lock on the two women.

“You ready?”

\---

Beverly looked at Deanna, then spoke into the communicator. 

“Energize.”


	8. Reunion

As the two women materialized, Picard was panicking. Wesley had confided to him that he suspected his mother had a phobia of space travel that manifested after his father’s death. He had also confided that he had heard their argument, and that her phobia was the reason she’d lashed out, not because she didn’t return his feelings. In fact, Wesley had been confident that his mother felt the same way, but Picard still had lingering doubts. 

“Mom!” 

Wesley ran towards the transporter pad, barely allowing her to step off before enveloping her in a big hug. Picard couldn’t help but smile at the scene. Wesley was a remarkable boy and she’d raised him well. She pulled away from her son, opened her eyes, and she looked right at him. Her hair was still its beautiful shade of red and had grown quite long. Her eyes were still that entrancing crystalline blue that haunted his dreams.   
.   
Beverly had opened her eyes after Wesley’s hug, and he had been standing behind. His beautifully deep hazel eyes were full of emotion. He was smiling and she could feel the butterflies forming like they had when they’d met twenty years ago. She started to walk towards him, and he matched her steps. Wesley and the others had moved away to give them some room.

They were about a foot apart before she managed to speak. 

“Jean-Luc,” she whispered.

He reached out his hand and brushed her hair back, cupping the side of her face, before moving back to his side.

“Hello, Beverly.”

She had forgotten how his voice, especially when he said her name, made her want to melt. She pulled herself together and tried to express her thoughts.

“I –,” she started, but the tears welling in her eyes stopped her. She had so much to say but couldn’t form the words. She took a breath and tried again.

“Jean-Luc, I – “, she faltered again and looked over to Deanna, who gave her a nod of encouragement. She turned back to him and his hazel eyes. She could see a twinkling of hope in them.

“Jean-Luc,” she tried again, her resolve strengthening, “I’m sorry for all the things I said that night.”

“It’s okay, Beverly - “

“No, Jean-Luc, it’s not. I hurt you deeply and I have lived with that regret every day since.”

She took a deep breath and tried to compose herself again.

“That night,” she continued, “You told me you’d loved me from the moment we’d met.”

She moved even closer to him and placed her hand on his chest. She could feel his artificial heart pounding underneath her touch.

“The truth is, Jean-Luc. I love you too.”

Upon those words, he closed the gap between them and kissed her as he had dreamed of for so long. In reality, it was even better. It felt like all the walls he'd kept around his heart were crumbling down and for once, he didn't want to build them back up.

She snaked her hand up and around the back of his head as she deepened their kiss. She felt as though the chains that fear had kept her in had broken away and she was finally free to follow her heart. And her heart wanted Jean-Luc Picard.


End file.
